Greece is a country in Europe and one of the greatest contributors to world culture. It gave the world democracy, the Olympic Games, and Western philosophy (through Aristotle and others), and major developments in mathematics and science (including the Archimedes principle). Alexander the Great, one of history's most famous conquerors, ruled Greece by inheritance during the 4th century BC and went on to conquer the Persian empire.

Greek contributions to literature include Greek mythology, Aesop's Fables, and the classical Greek drama. The names of most of the constellations derive from Greek mythology. Famous examples of classical Greek art include the Winged Victory of Samothrace. Such pieces are often displayed in museums (as shown in the Sesame Street special Don't Eat the Pictures), and both the style and the subject matter (Gods and mythic heroes) remained popular with Renassaince artists (such as the sculptor Giambologna).

References

• The Sesame Street 1978 Calendar devotes the month of June to Greece.

• In episode 309 of The Muppet Show, Kermit introduces the title song from the 1960 Greek-language film Never on Sunday, as performed by Miss Piggy and the pigs. He refers to the musical style as bouzouki (referencing the Greek stringed instrument). The number includes traditional Greek plate-throwing.

• Pete in The Muppets Take Manhattan is Greek.

• Various museum-themed Muppet books, including Museum of Monster Art and Miss Piggy's Treasury of Art Masterpieces from the Kermitage Collection, include parodies of Greek artwork.

• In the video Rowlf's Rhapsodies with the Muppets, when asked what "Pachalafaka" means, Rowlf calls it "that Greek pastry stuffed with walnuts and honey." He refers to baclava (and it is still debated whether the ancient food is Greek or Turkish in origin).

• In the Muppet Babies episode "Around the Nursery in 80 Days," the babies take Nanny to Athens, Greece. They view the ancient Greek ruins (although Baby Animal ruins the ruins).

• In The Muppets episode "A Tail of Two Piggies," ABC network president Lucy Royce states that George Stephanopoulos (of Greek descent) has lobbied for years to wear a crop top: "Nobody wants to see Greek belly."